Alex Woodie
Alex Woodie is Senior Editor at IT Jungle. He was previously editor of two of IT Jungle's main newsletters, Four Hundred Stuff and The Windows Observer. Prior to joining Midrange Server (as Guild Companies was formerly called) in October 2001, Alex was a products editor at now defunct publisher Midrange Computing, where he was first introduced to the AS/400 and covered hardware, software, and services for Midrange Technology SHOWCASE magazine. Before joining Midrange Computing, Alex was a staff writer for The Insurance Journal and a reporter and columnist with The Paradise Post newspaper. Woodie obtained his Bachelors of Arts degree in journalism from Humboldt State University in 1997. Upon graduation, Alex intended to make his way onto a major daily newspaper, but in 1999 he found himself drawn to the high-technology industry, where his background in science and engineering has suited him well. He lives in Northern San Diego County. When he is not writing next week's newsletters, Alex can be found in his favorite chair reading the day's paper, in the kitchen, or at the beach.
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Next Up on IBM i: Worklight and Forms Experience Builder?
February 12, 2013 Alex Woodie
The pressure applied on IBM to get several former Lotus products running on IBM i worked, as IBM has committed to supporting Lotus Notes Traveler and IBM Connections on the platform. Now, the Power Systems Champions are shifting their focus to getting additional products supported, too.
At the recent IBM Connect (formerly Lotusphere) conference, Justin Liu, an IBM developerWorks correspondent, and a camera crew tracked down Roxanne Reynolds-Lair, the Power Systems Champion and tireless IBM i promoter, to chat about the intersection of Power Systems servers and IBM’s collaboration platform. The interview was recently posted on IBM’s YouTube channel.
Reynolds-Lair,
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Native, Web-Based, or Hybrid Apps for Mobile? mrc Weighs In
February 12, 2013 Alex Woodie
Mobile application development has taken the world–and the IBM i midrange–by storm. But there are important decisions to make before embarking upon a mobile app development strategy, namely, should you develop native apps, build apps that run in the Web browser, or take a hybrid approach for mobile devices? Development tool maker mrc recently published a white paper on the topic.
The title of mrc’s white paper, “Native mobile apps: The wrong choice for business?” makes mrc’s position on the matter fairly clear from the get-go. In almost no situations does it make sense for a business to build native
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Spinnaker Touts Growth in Third-Party ERP Support Business
February 12, 2013 Alex Woodie
2012 was a good year for Spinnaker Support, which provides third-party support services for customers running JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, JDE World, and SAP ERP software. The company claims that it grew revenues by 38 percent in 2012 compared to 2012, while sales bookings are up more than 100 percent.
“2012 was a year for tremendous growth and accomplishments for Spinnaker Support,” states the company’s CEO Matt Stava in a press release. “Our team has grown in ways we could have only dreamed of a few years ago and our current pipeline is three times larger than it was this
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MAC-PAC Still Going Strong, TDCI Says
February 12, 2013 Alex Woodie
In 1997, the original developers of the MAC-PAC ERP system, Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) selected TDCI to take over responsibility and control of the IBM i-based ERP system. Fifteen years later, the product is still going strong, TDCI says.
MAC-PAC XE, as it’s now called, is a manufacturing-oriented ERP system that is currently used by 85 companies across the world, including Nissan Forklift, Ingersoll Rand, Watlow, Quaker Window and Door, AT Cross, and Steelcraft. Even Microsoft once used the software for its product packaging business.
The mature product, which supports i5/OS V5R4 through IBM i 7.1, includes core MRP
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IBM Completes One Big Data Analytic Acquisition, Announces Another
February 12, 2013 Alex Woodie
IBM last week completed its acquisition of StoredIQ, which helps companies alleviate legal risk by analyzing vast data stores and deleting old information, or “data debris.” It also announced the acquisition of Star Analytics, which develops tools to help companies integrate their reporting and business intelligence tools, wherever they may be.
IBM says its acquisition of StoredIQ, which was first announced in December, will bolster its other acquisitions, including PSS Systems and Vivisimo, and provide new capabilities to existing IBM solutions in the areas of archiving, e-discovery, data governance, and records and retention management.
The software from Austin,
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Saudi CAT Dealer to Implement Infor M3
February 12, 2013 Alex Woodie
A Saudi Arabian Caterpillar dealer will implement Infor M3 on the IBM i server platform to automate its business processes, Infor announced recently. The two-year roll-out of M3 for Equipment will begin shortly for Zahid Tractor & Heavy Machinery Co. and related companies.
Zahid will implement several M3 for Equipment modules, including supply chain execution, warehouse mobility, sales management, and financial accounting. The solution will be implemented by Accentia Middle East, Infor’s M3 partner in the region.
The new software is expected to help smooth the flow of information and business processes among the company’s various departments at 40 sites
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TR6 Brings Assorted Tech Goodies To IBM i
February 11, 2013 Alex Woodie
On February 5, IBM unveiled IBM i 7.1 TR6, the sixth Technology Refresh since IBM shifted to the agile development model for the OS in 2010. TR6 introduces a range of new technologies, including DB2 for i enhancements, support for USB flash drives, and support for the latest SSL standard, among others. Better manageability, high availability, and set-up capabilities round out the release.
During the much-anticipated announcement day, most eyes were on the new Power7+ servers, including the sub-$6,000 Power Systems Model 710, the Power 720, the Power 730, the Power 740, the Power 750, and the Power 760. You
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Liaison Widens Partner Role in Selling Cloud Integration
February 6, 2013 Alex Woodie
Liaison Technologies this week launched an initiative to attract more partners to sell its cloud integration products and services. The company already has a successful business selling integration services through its cloud, thanks to the acquisition last year of HubSpan. Now, the idea is to grow the cloud service brokerage (CSB) business in any way possible, including letting partners sell it as a product, or even as their own white labeled services offering.
Even before buying HubSpan and its sophisticated CSB offering last year, Liaison had many irons in the integration fire. Its pre-HubSpan repertoire included Electronic Commerce Server (ECS),
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Attachmate Delivers Mobile Access to IBM Servers
February 5, 2013 Alex Woodie
Attachmate last month unveiled new software that lets users access IBM i- and zSeries-resident data and applications from mobile devices. Verastream Host Integrator version 7.5 brings the capability to serve 5250 and 3270 screens as HTML5 applications to tablets and smartphones running iOS, Windows 8, and Android mobile operating systems. The software is the first deliverable that’s part of Attachmate’s newly launched MobileNow initiative.
The mobile bug is now spreading faster than the flu. Companies in every industry are demanding ways to access host assets via smartphones and tablets. Attachmate, which has the second largest base of terminal emulation customers
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Rocket Lifts Off with New Mobile Focus
February 5, 2013 Alex Woodie
Organizations that want to deliver mobile access to their IBM i applications now have another option from Rocket Software. Last month, the Massachusetts company unveiled LegaSuite version 7.1, which can transform 5250 screens into mobile interfaces for smartphones and tablets, using HTML5 and PhoneGap technologies. Rocket says the new LegaSuite Mobile component will deliver a modern mobile experience with the same amount of work required to create Web apps of old.
The LegaSuite product line, which Rocket obtained with its acquisition of Seagull Software in 2006, has been asked to do a lot over the last dozen years. Whether